Country rankings

Life Expectancy in South America

Chile has the highest Life Expectancy UN in 2026 (81.7 years), followed by Falkland Islands (79.8 years) and Uruguay (78.6 years). Bolivia has the lowest (69.1 years).

Health14 countries · 6 metricsUpdated Jul 1, 2025Original page
9 sources
14 of 235 countries
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Life Expectancy UN, 2026

Darker green is better (higher is better). Click a place to highlight it.

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All 14 ranked

Best first.

Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →

Each dot is one country; the lines mark the median and the middle half.

Median
77.7 years
Middle half 74.1 years – 78.3 years
Average
76.2 years
14 countries
Highest
81.7 years
Chile
Lowest
69.1 years
Bolivia

Over time · 2020–2026

The top 5 in 2026, against the median.

  • Median of all countries
  • Chile
  • Falkland Islands
  • Uruguay
  • Peru
  • Colombia

Data

Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.

14 countries · # = rank by Life Expectancy UN
#
1Chile81.7 years83.5179.88818379
2Falkland Islands79.8 years81.777.81———
3Uruguay78.6 years82.2974.79788274
4Peru78.3 years80.6176.02788075
5Colombia78.3 years80.9275.57788075
6Ecuador77.9 years80.6275.28778075
7Argentina77.8 years80.2975.3778075
8French Guiana77.5 years80.4474.71———
9Brazil76.4 years79.4673.33767973
10Paraguay74.2 years77.3571.26747771
11Suriname74.0 years77.2670.87747770
12Venezuela73.0 years76.9969.227377—
13Guyana70.6 years74.3566.84707467
14Bolivia69.1 years71.6966.56697166

What correlates with Life Expectancy UN (2026)?

Pearson r against 1,458 other country metrics sharing at least 10 countries, 1 near-identical series hidden. Ranks are read by standing: a better rank counts as higher, whether rank 1 is the best place on a list or the worst. Correlation is not causation.

Higher together

Places that have a higher Life Expectancy UN tend to score higher on these (or rank better)

  1. GDI Male Life ExpectancyGender Development Index by Country
    r = +0.99 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  2. GDI Female Life ExpectancyGender Development Index by Country
    r = +0.99 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  3. Life ExpectancyHappy Planet Index by Country
    r = +0.95 · very strong · n = 10
    Plot
  4. HealthSocial Progress Index by Country
    r = +0.95 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  5. Life ExpectancyPast Life Expectancy by Country
    r = +0.88 · very strong · n = 13
    Plot
  6. LP Infrastructure & Market AccessLegatum Prosperity IndexA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.87 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher Life Expectancy UN tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)

  1. Infant Mortality RateInfant Mortality Rate by Country
    r = −0.92 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  2. Neonatal Mortality RateNeonatal Mortality Rate by Country
    r = −0.91 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  3. Births per WomanHealth Indicators by Country (World Bank)
    r = −0.89 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  4. Crude Birth Rate (UN)Birth Rate by Country
    r = −0.89 · very strong · n = 13
    Plot
  5. Young ADRAge Dependency Ratio by Country
    r = −0.88 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot
  6. % ChildrenChildren in the World by Country
    r = −0.87 · very strong · n = 12
    Plot

Quick answers

Which country has the highest Life Expectancy UN?
Chile has the highest Life Expectancy UN in 2026, at 81.7 years, followed by Falkland Islands (79.8 years) and Uruguay (78.6 years).
Which country has the lowest Life Expectancy UN?
Bolivia has the lowest Life Expectancy UN in 2026, at 69.1 years.
What is the median Life Expectancy UN across countries?
The median is 77.7 years across the 14 countries with data in 2026.
Where does this life expectancy in south america data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Life expectancy at birth, total (years) - World Bank; Life expectancy at birth, male (years) - World Bank; Life expectancy at birth, female (years) - World Bank; Life expectancy at birth for both sexes combined (years) - United Nations.